Coral reefs are valued for their diversity and beauty, but are increasingly threatened worldwide by natural and human-caused stressors. To address threats such as land-based pollution and coastal development, EPA, Pacific Southwest’s office is applying a range of regulatory and non-regulatory environmental programs to monitor and protect coral reefs.

Coral Reef Strategy

Coral reefs are threatened globally by the impacts of climate change and local stress such as land-based and marine pollution. Scientists tell us that 90 percent of all coral will be threatened by 2030 if we do nothing. The best opportunity we have to protect coral for future generations, other than reducing greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, is to limit the amount of local stress on the coral by maintaining coral ecosystems with healthy food webs and clean, clear water.

EPA’s Pacific Southwest coral reef strategy (PDF)(5 pp, 700K) improves EPA’s focus on coral reef protection. The strategy builds upon what is known about the threats to coral reefs to direct existing tools and resources in the most efficient and beneficial way possible. EPA intends to implement the strategy in partnership with state, territorial, non-governmental, and other federal agencies.